Well there you go ... another market over and done with, superbly crafted and hats off to the administration. Justine and your team you are amazing!It was indeed a hot day but as my dear friend Ellen once pointed out, it's not that it's hot it's not minding that it's hot.

And today is even hotter but due to the fact that the Bazaar at Fremantle Arts Centre is on this weekend I have been keeping up the pace in the studio - unpacking from yesterday's Upmarket, deciding what needs to be done and getting back to making. The surprising thing though is that it all feels quite enjoyable.

Would you believe that by the close of business today, thoughts of Einstein's Theory of Relativity had popped into my head. Not that I know much about it, but my version and particular experience of the passing of time as occurred today while I was stitching the binding on a quilt I thought could not possibly be finished by Friday (opening day at Bazaar) seemed to touch on the paradox…

TO all of you FROM Yuniko Studio! ﻿ To let you know that I will be at Perth Upmarket at the end of this month and then Bazaar at the Fremantle Arts Centre in the first weekend of December. I continue to be inspired by working with recycled materials and today I made a few cards as you see in the photo, which are made by layering fabrics from trousers, ties and kimonos, as well as the left-overs from larger sewing projects. I stamped the TO and FROM inside, as the cards are small and I thought would be good for gift tags for presents.

A propos of nothing at all is one of my mother's favourite phrases, and I am using it as a title because this post has nothing to do with Yuniko and what happens in the studio. Nevertheless, I do like to muse upon things and as musing is very much a part of the creative process, I think it is appropriate enough.

When my mother uses the a propos of nothing at all phrase, it is either to change a topic of conversation that she doesn't want to pursue, or to attend to a pause in the conversation which is in danger of becoming an awkward silence. It's usually said in a sing-song way and sounds like a tinkling bell alerting others that a shift is about to happen. I have grown to appreciate these linguistic curiosities used in everyday conversation because they bring to mind things beyond the here and now and hearing them provokes a sense of curiosity that leaves one wondering about their meaning. There are many phrases that I grew up hearing without really understanding. Fo…

How great it is that we can change our mind! I don't mean in the literal sense, because perhaps you can but I don't know for sure (customer: "Please can I have another one - I don't think this one works very well").

I do know that there is nothing stopping one from deviating from a path previously decided upon.

What on earth is she on about? Well, it's about being flexible and how great it is to be so. I think. I did mention that I was working towards an open studio, then I was offered a spot at the next Perth Upmarket, so instead I have decided to do that and not worry about the open studio, though I could still do that, but cannot say when ... does it really matter? The next post may well be ... On the art of surprise!

For now, please be informed that my work will be on show and for sale at the next Perth Upmarket on Sunday September 12th at the University of WA.

This week I have been working on a few things contemporaneously, motivated by the upcoming open studio show in a couple of months. It's very reassuring to feel a sense of purpose and clarity about getting back to making in a focussed way.

Projects include two scrap fabric quilts, fabric crochet bowls, fabric cats, crocheted jewellery, cloth dolls, papier mache 'tall people' and a couple of paintings. There is plenty of clutter and no excuse to sit and wonder what to do next. Three sewing machines are threaded up and I have even threaded up a few needles with different coloured cottons, ready to hand stitch. The dress rack is laden with pieces, some already finished, some needing cutting up and remaking and others needing trims and embellishments.

There is a long list of things to do chalked onto a smokey grey wall in the studio - a way of keeping track of what I need to do on a daily basis. Also good for writing inspirational ideas which are vicariously gathered from a rang…

I have been away spending time in our favourite haunt ... along with goodness knows how many other tourists from around the place. However once settled into our room with balcony overlooking the jungle, incessant sounds of frogs and crickets and rushing stream, the tourists nowhere to be seen and plenty of time to relax and explore, it was a very inspiring place to be.

If ever there was a place to 'notice what you notice' (thanks Daph!) it's in Bali, such an incredible mixture of all things and so busily geared to the tourist that it sounds like such a ho-hum place to go. Except that I love it and keep going back. Why wouldn't one? There are so many other places to explore ... but we are so near, it's easy, relaxing and always interesting. There is always much more to see than immediately meets the eye and the more I come, the more I feel I know the place and the more I appreciate it. It fits with my own ideas about 'finding not seeking'(Picasso's je ne…

Even simple things like cards, although in this case it's not so much the cards as the envelopes. I have had a pile of red envelopes in a drawer which I bought in Bangkok a year and a half ago. They are a non-standard shape and I haven't got around to using them because they don't fit the standard A6 cards that I usually make.

We were wandering through the China Town area of Bangkok in January and I guess in a lead-up to the Chinese New Year there was a very festive and decorative feel to the streets. We wandered past an old lady selling bits and pieces from a card table set up on the pavement outside the shops, among other things there were these lovely red envelopes! I protested at her intial price and tried to haggle but she stood her ground and became angry, waving arms and yelling words I couldn't understand, so I backed down and decided to make light of the situation, by commenting on her perfume which was truly exotic and pungent, while handing her the money. Sh…

A year ago more or less to the day I was at a market selling very little - a fundraiser for a school and they did very well I think on the delicious cakes the girls were ever so graciously serving. Next to me was a man I knew from my days working at Aspects in Kings Park. He makes and sells nougat and as we chatted he told me he was part of the SLOW movement organisation in Perth. He was very curious about my work and commented on a crochet jacket I had for sale, wondering how long it took to make. It was made from many different kinds and shades of green yarn, using offcuts and odd balls found here and there. I told him it was a year in the making and he wanted to know (I love people who love specifics)if I did nothing else at all but sat and crocheted, how long would it take ... a week? two weeks? Who knows! Anyway that would be completely out of the question because who would want to sit and do nothing but wield a hook in and out for hours on end?

Hmm ... I feel like I have been busy but my most productive activity so far seems to be in producing to-do lists.Endless lists on numerous pieces of paper, in books, in my head (awake at 3 am)and the pieces of paper get mislaid or left at home when I go out to do the things on the list. I keep writing the same things on the list which is very frustrating seeing it still on the list when one of my greatest pleasures is to strike a triumphant line through a list item when done. One of these items is putting something new on Etsy.I have even added exclamation marks to draw my attention to the fact that I believe this to be an important item requiring urgent attention. So today I decided to head off to bed early with the laptop and here I am three hours later having managed to put two new items on. At least I have not whiled away the night in front of the tv. I could have been reading The Consolations of Philosophy (Alain de Boton) but that can wait until tomorrow. I am consoled by the fa…

A new fabric crochet container - bowl / basket / bag .. completed today. I have used a ramie fabric found in a fabric shop in Bali. Although ramie is a natural fabric it has an unusual quality - a bit bouncy (?) but I was quite surprised to see all its hair standing on end on the finished piece.

Today I have been playing around in the studio and creating some snapshots for uploading onto flickr. It's tantamount to having a mini review of my work and giving pieces which have been around for a while some space of their own. I am glad I have managed to hang onto pieces rather than selling off everything that gets made for markets (not that one would normally sell everything, but I remember reading where an artist should always hang onto certain pieces). I think that what these pieces have in common is that they came about without much (if any) planning and probably without any thought as to them being seen by or sold to anyone else.

One little painting I am fond of...called Woman under the Moon. She is a contemplative figure who hangs in a corner of the studio.

a week in sydney highlights ... water transport the dominance of old things a lack of pretence variety small independent shops choice intrigue taxi drivers

buttons at Ici et La

bridge detail

alley way in central city

shop window

japanese silks at chee soon and fitzgerald

night view of city

Everything is an inspiration when it's new. The photos prompted ideas related to creative work - the bridge a patchwork of triangles and hand stitching, the alley way and night view both lend themselves to an abstract painting. The fabric rolls and buttons are just about collections and groups of things and the whole being more than the sum of its parts. The window with it's sign reminding us of the importance of work-play balance ... a visible presence of simple philosophies in life. I am reassured!

Having been on an extended creative break since late last year, I am happy to say that things are moving again in the Yuniko studio. This is the first time in the last three years I have been quite happy to just play around without feeling the pressure to produce. Play is a fundamental aspect of the creative process: to be process-oriented rather than product-focussed. As such and as of this moment, there is nothing to show for it. Great! I say. How does one resolve the dilemma of making ever more things for an already cluttered world? Hmm .. any ideas?